Recent News & Accomplishments
2019
Van Horn is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Researcher in Programming Languages
Assistant Professor David Van Horn has received an NSF CAREER Award for his work entitled Gradual Verification: From Scripting to Proving . His work will investigate the theory and pragmatics of next generation programming languages that enable users to gradually adopt automated verification and formal method techniques for making software with strong behavioral guarantees. These next generation languages will bridge the gap between today's expressive, widely-used programming languages like JavaScript and Haskell and verification-oriented languages like Coq and F*, which are used by more... read more
In a recently published paper CS researchers proposed an intuitive method to facilitate constructing artificial neural networks. The method, inspired by human learning, proposes a multi-stage information distillation approach using multi-resolution features and feedbacks. The method facilitates information propagation and makes neural networks more efficient and easier to visualize. Chengxi Ye, Chinmaya Devaraj, Michael Maynord, Cornelia Fermüller and Yiannis Aloimonos, "Evenly Cascaded Convolutional Networks," 2018 IEEE International Conference on Big Data (Big Data), Seattle, WA, USA, 2018... read more
Assistant Professor Leilani Battle has received an NSF CRII award for her research entitled CHS: Modeling Analysis Behavior to Support Interactive Exploration of Massive Datasets . Her project works to improve the visualization and data management systems that scientists and other analysts use to extract and understand information on both broad and granular scales. By integrating these two types of systems, her work will infer user goals and future behaviors based upon the ways in which they have previously accessed and used the above mentioned systems. Battle joined the Department of... read more
Professor Samir Khuller and Professor Aravind Srinivasan have each received an Amazon Research Award (ARA) for 2018. Khuller and Srinivasan are two of eighty-two top researchers from around the world to have received this award. Their work—and the work of their students—will have contributions to open-source projects. ARA aims to fund projects that lead toward a PhD degree or conducted as a part of post-doctoral work. Khuller and Srinivasan will each work with an Amazon research contact and may choose to speak to researchers at Amazon worldwide about their projects. As ARA recipients, Khuller... read more
With alumnus Xiao Wang (PhD'18), he will build protocols for secure multiparty computation
Announcement from the Maryland Cybersecurity Center : Jonathan Katz, a professor of computer science and director of the Maryland Cybersecurity Center (MC2) who also holds an appointment in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS), is working with a former MC2 graduate student and an international startup to design and build protocols for secure multi-party computation (MPC). MPC protocols allow a group of parties—each holding their own private input—to compute an arbitrary function of their collective inputs in a distributed fashion, without revealing any... read more
Alumnus Saket Navlakha (Ph.D, '10) has received a CAREER Award from NSF for his proposed study, "Algorithms in nature: uncovering principles of plant structure, growth, and adaptation.” Navlaka is an assistant professor in the Integrative Biology Laboratory and a Pioneer Fund Developmental Chair of the Salk Institute. His project will "elucidate the naturally occurring algorithms in biological systems, such as the branching of a tree in search for light, and compare the network design strategies and optimization principles to that of developing neurons in the brain and human engineered... read more
2018
The Department is pleased to announce that the Association for Computing Machinery has named Professor Mohammad T. Hajiaghayi as a Fellow in the class of 2018. He is being honored for "For contributions to the fields of algorithmic graph theory and algorithmic game theory." ACM Fellows comprise fewer than 1% of the association's global membership. Hajiaghayi's selection as ACM Fellows is based on professional experience and achievements, as well as contributions to the broader computing community. Please read the official announcement here: http://bit.ly/2PkaNmf About ACM ACM, the Association... read more
He will serve in this position until 2022
Professor Mihai Pop has been named director of UMIACS ( University of Maryland Institute for Computer Studies). He will serve in this capacity until 2022. CMNS has posted the following announcement: https://cmns.umd.edu/news-events/news/mihai-pop-named-director-universit... , printed below for your convenience : Mihai Pop, a professor of computer science noted for his scientific research and his advocacy for greater equality in academia, has been appointed director of the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS), effective Nov. 25, 2018 through June 30, 2022... read more
Vanderbrug was an early graduate of the Ph.D. program in Computer Science
The Department of Computer Science is sad to report that Alumni Hall of Fame member Dr. Gordon James Vanderbrug passed away on Friday, November 9th 2018. After earning a B.S. in mathematics from Calvin College and a M.S. in mathematics from Wayne State University, Dr. Gordon enrolled in the Department of Computer Science here in 1969. He was advised by Professor Azriel Rosenfeld and partially by Emeritus Professor Jack Minker. Dr. Vanderbrug worked in areas including machine vision systems, robotics, and software tools. In 1996 he co-founded iBasis, a wholesale carrier that pioneered the use... read more
Going to Grace Hopper and Mentoring Students helped her on her path
For Veteran's Day, CMNS has published feature story on senior computer science major Kathryn Mann. Mann, a former member of the U.S. Navy who specialized in national security, attributes her experiences at Grace Hopper Celeberation--generously funded by Brendan Iribe and BRAID through the Maryland Center for Women in Computing as well as her work mentoring other students through that same center as reasons why she remained committed to finishing her a computer science major. Read more about Mann and her experiences at the University here: https://cmns.umd.edu/news-events/news/meet-kathryn-... read more